Leadership coming together on Cubs

Newcomer Pena assuming role naturally along with familiar faces such as Dempster, Byrd and Wood

March 05, 2011|By Paul Sullivan, Tribune reporter

Carlos Pena in the dugout as Starlin Castro is in the on deck circle. (Phil Velasquez, Chicago Tribune)

MESA, Ariz. — He has been with the club only a few weeks and might not even be around in November, when the one-year deal his agent called a "pillow contract" ends.

But Carlos Pena already has melded in seamlessly in the Cubs' clubhouse and felt comfortable enough to join Marlon Byrd in calling a players meeting Thursday at HoHoKam Park, after the Carlos Silva-Aramis Ramirez dugout scuffle the day before.

Despite the commotion, Pena said it is one of the more enjoyable clubhouses he has been in during his career.

"Some other clubhouses are a little more businesslike," he said. "I don't think that's necessarily good. I like guys who love the game, who appreciate they're a big-league player and they never take it for granted and enjoy themselves like they were kids. This is that kind of clubhouse.

"You love being here. You can't wait to wake up and go out and play. That's what this clubhouse is like. That type of mentality stands out. I've been in a lot of great places, but this is one of those teams that has it. Very cool. I have been very impressed."

Asked Friday about leadership potential, manager Mike Quade named Byrd, Ryan Dempster, Kerry Wood and "the two guys from Tampa Bay" — Pena and Matt Garza — as the kind of veterans who "can command the kind of respect where you would like to think players are listening and keep things together."

Wood, who has rejoined the team after a two-year absence, said it's too soon for leaders to emerge and for chemistry to form.

"It's tough to get a read to where it fits for the first two weeks," he said. "We're split up into different groups. We've only been together for four days and we're still split up. Half the team goes home when they're not playing. It's really tough to see that. Once we cut (the roster) down a little bit and start staying for the majority of the games, the everyday guys are there, guys will have a better read."

Dempster, Derrek Lee and Ted Lilly were seen by management as the three leaders the last two seasons. But Lilly was traded in July and Lee in August, leaving a vacuum. Pena, who is on his sixth major league team in 11 seasons, eschews the label, saying he only wants to foster a family atmosphere in the clubhouse.

"I don't particularly care about that at all," he said. "I'll take that as a compliment when someone says 'Carlos, you are a leader.' I say 'thank you,' and that's where it ends. It's all about being a family and feeling comfortable enough that if I have a suggestion to make to my teammate, or he has one for me, we can do it like we're brothers.

"That's the type of energy I want to give off to my teammates — that togetherness, and familylike atmosphere. If a teammate says, 'Carlos, I think you should've hustled, should've ran harder on that ground ball, but you jogged,' I'd be like, 'Did I? My bad. You'll never see that again.' I want a teammate to feel comfortable enough to say that to me. And I want to feel comfortable to say it."

Pena believes that kind of comfort zone is necessary for the Cubs to succeed. Everyone needs to be able to call each other out and take some constructive criticism.

"That goes a long way," he said. "It's extremely powerful. I want to make sure if I'm telling you this, I also embody it.

"We're trying to set a tone, make sure we get together and communicate well. Stuff like leadership? Those are just labels."